The early coronary care units (CCUs) from the 1960s have evolved over the past half
century with advancements in alarm-capable monitors, point-of-care diagnostic tools,
and specialised equipment to address multiorgan dysfunction for patients presenting
with more complex cardiovascular disease and both cardiac and noncardiac intensive
care unit (ICU)–related needs.
1
By the 2000s, the advent of CCUs and protocolised cardiovascular care delivered by
establishing systems-of-care and referral networks had shifted the demographics and
scope of management of the critically ill patients with cardiovascular disease admitted
to contemporary cardiac (CICUs) and cardiovascular (CVICUs) intensive care units.
1
,2
For example, more patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) are dying of ventricular
failure rather than fatal arrhythmias, owing to timely defibrillation, transvenous
pacers, thrombolysis, primary percutaneous coronary intervention, and therapeutic
hypothermia delivered within regional systems of care.
1
Currently, patients with end-stage cardiomyopathies complicated by cardiogenic shock
(CS) can be bridged to mechanical heart pumps and heart transplantation with the use
of vasoactive agents along with temporary mechanical circulatory (tMCS), renal, and
ventilatory support devices.
1
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Canadian Journal of CardiologyAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- From coronary care units to cardiac intensive care units: recommendations for organisational, staffing, and educational transformation.Can J Cardiol. 2016; 32: 1204-1213
- Evolution of the coronary care unit: clinical characteristics and temporal trends in healthcare delivery and outcomes.Crit Care Med. 2010; 38: 375-381
- New development in continuous hemodynamic monitoring of the critically ill patient.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Emerging applications of extra-cardiac ultrasound in critically ill cardiac patients.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Transesophageal echocardiography in cardiac arrest: the heart and beyond.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- A shifting paradigm: the role of focused cardiac ultrasound in bedside patient assessment.Chest. 2020; 158: 2107-2118
- Refining the stratification and prognosis of cardiogenic shock patients to improve their outcome.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Management of cardiogenic shock unrelated to acute myocardial infarction.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Leveraging existing STEMI networks to regionalize cardiogenic shock systems of care: efforts to expand the scope could improve shock outcomes.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- A pragmatic approach to weaning temporary mechanical circulatory support: a state-of-the-art review.JACC Heart Fail. 2021; 9: 664-673
- Preparation for interfacility transport of the critically ill patient.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- A second chance for survival: clinical trial evidence, eligibility, and barriers to implementation of ECPR for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Targeted temperature management following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest integrating evidence into real world practice.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Neuroprognostication in the post-cardiac arrest patient: a Canadian Cardiovascular Society position statement.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Special considerations in critical care of the congenital heart disease patient.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Perioperative optimization of the cardiac surgical patient.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Family engagement in critical care cardiology: a guide for clinicians.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
- Failure to rescue: a quality metric for cardiac surgery and cardiovascular critical care.Can J Cardiol. 2023; : xxxx
Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 17, 2023
Accepted:
February 10,
2023
Received:
February 9,
2023
Publication stage
In Press Journal Pre-ProofFootnotes
See page 4 for disclosure information.
Identification
Copyright
© 2023 Canadian Cardiovascular Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.